Megan Duckett lets a baby gibbon named Elizabeth inspect her hair while the primate is in quarantine in Phuket, Thailand. Duckett, a Waukesha native, extended a trip to Thailand so that she could work with a group that assists the threatened animals.

WAUKESHA - When Waukesha native Megan Duckett graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2006, she decided to take some time to travel before she entered the "real world."

Duckett, 23, decided to visit southeast Asia for a couple of months to teach English, though she soon found a way to use her zoology degree that turned her planned short trip into a 15-month excursion.

"I more or less didn’t know what to expect before I left," Duckett said. "But really, I was just excited to be in a new culture that is so far removed from someone with a western mind set."

Duckett worked with the Gibbon Rehabilitation Project in Phuket, Thailand, to help stop the widespread destruction of the gibbon primate and its habitat. A sub-ape, baby gibbons are threatened by the destruction of their rain forest habitat and from poachers who nab them for the illegal animal trade, often to participate in pictures with tourists.

Duckett worked for eight hours per day, six days a week during the span, performing health checks rehabilitating gibbon habitats and helping the primates expand their territory. Just to get to the habitats, Duckett had to hike two hours into the rain forest’s wild and treacherous conditions.

"I have a passion for conservation of endangered species and it was very fascinated with them," she said. "And it was really cool that what I learn at school I could use in a real world application."

Resort owners can make more than the average Thai person’s monthly salary in one night with the animal attraction, according to the GRP. Poachers kill roughly nine adult gibbons for every baby they obtain.

The project is run by the Wildlife Animal Rescue Foundation of Thailand. Founded in 1992, WARF has run numerous programs dedicated to preserving natural habitats and native species throughout that country.

Ampika Korcharernkit, volunteer coordinator with the WARF, got to know Duckett very well during her 15-month tenure. While observing Duckett’s diligence to her work, Korcharernkit was able to see the passion for conservation the she has.

"Megan was a valuable member of our team and has made a significant contribution to our cause," Korcharernkit said in an e-mailed statement. "She has well proved herself to be a fast learner and hard worker."

Duckett said her passion for conservation is stronger than ever and she now plans on going to graduate school to further her education in zoology. And she said she would even like to go abroad again for work similar to what she did with the gibbons near Phuket.

"I was more homesick leaving Thailand than I was going there," she said. "I always knew that someday I’d be coming back to the states, but I don’t know when I’ll get to go to Thailand again."